The Pittsburgh Steelers don't play a pretty brand of football. It's one of the reasons they're 3-0

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mike Tomlin has spent the past few years almost gleefully leaning into an old-school approach that at times has seemed out of step with the modern NFL.

Part of this has been out of necessity. The Pittsburgh Steelers have spent most of the 2020s lacking the components — perhaps the coaching most of all — to build an offense that could keep pace with the teams they've been futilely chasing in the AFC.

So Tomlin did what he could to slow the game down. To gum it up with a defense and a thudding running game designed to eat up the clock and keep the Steelers competitive.

While it's been just enough to scrape by — for all of the hand-wringing in Pittsburgh this decade, the Steelers have still made the playoffs three out of the past four years — it hasn't been enough to succeed in late January.

And while the middle of winter remains far away, there's a very real sense during Pittsburgh's 3-0 start that this team isn't built to merely survive. For proof, look no further than the Steelers' final three possessions in Sunday's 20-10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers.

Yards: 222. Points: 10, though it easily could have been 13 or 17 if Tomlin hadn't decided to have quarterback Justin Fields kneel down with the ball at the Chargers 1 in the waning moments.

Swagger: considerable.

Fields joked an unnamed Los Angeles linebacker was relieved Pittsburgh took its foot off the gas with the game in hand. Left tackle Dan Moore Jr. said the offensive line could sense that the Chargers defensive front was “just done.”

“That’s why we have the most physical training camp in the league, for drives like that," tight end Pat Freiermuth said.

Meanwhile, Pittsburgh's defense was overwhelming the Chargers. Elandon Roberts' sack tweaked Los Angeles quarterback Justin Herbert's achy right ankle. Backup Taylor Heinicke entered and found little time to do much of anything, absorbing three sacks in the span of four snaps, symbolic of a second half in which the Chargers were held to minus-5 yards.

Asked if this was the Platonic ideal of a Tomlin-coached game, Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick smiled.

“I think he'd like more stops on defense," Fitzpatrick said, though it should be noted Pittsburgh has allowed an NFL-low 26 points so far. “I think he'd like to put more points on the board on offense. But I think (today was an) example of well-executed football."

The kind of football the Steelers have been forced to play for a while now. No wonder they have looked so comfortable finishing off Atlanta, Denver and the Chargers.

A tight game late is where the Steelers live, and confidence that they will find a way to find a way is rising with each passing week.

“That's the Pittsburgh way and we love it,” Freiermuth said. “We embrace it and we think it's great.”

Sticking with the run even when it's a slog, and it was very much a slog for the first three quarters against the Chargers.

That changed when Pittsburgh got the ball back with 4:59 to go. The Steelers ran the ball seven times in eight plays, with Najee Harris and Cordarrelle Patterson churning for 68 yards against a Los Angeles front that looked as if it had seen enough.

The early game scripting has left a little bit to be desired. Three of Pittsburgh's first four drives were quick three-and-outs, with a methodical 13-play, 70-yard touchdown drive breaking the monotony.

While Fields appears to be improving by the week and is completing 73% of his passes through three games, if the offense could provide an early lead, that would only further embolden a pass rush that is among the best in the league.

Wide receiver Calvin Austin III's pregame ritual includes opening the “Notes” app on his phone and reading messages he's stored of people who never thought the 5-foot-9, 162-pound former walk-on at Memphis would make it.

After two injury-marred seasons to start his NFL career, Austin found his footing against the Chargers. His 55-yard catch-and-run for a score showcased the quickness that had led the Steelers to take him in the fourth round in 2022. He lined up in the slot, broke inside and outraced a pair of defenders to the end zone.

Spencer Anderson — who has been filling in at left guard for injured Isaac Seumalo — found himself watching from the sideline at times while rookie Mason McCormick filled in. It ultimately may not matter with Seumalo getting closer to returning from a pectoral injury.

Outside linebacker Alex Highsmith left in the second half with a groin injury. Nick Herbig thrived in Highsmith's absence, picking up two of Pittsburgh's five sacks. ... Tomlin pulled RB Jaylen Warren in the second half because he didn't feel Warren looked right. ... Russell Wilson served as the emergency quarterback for a third straight week while he rehabs a calf injury. Considering the way Fields is playing, there is no need for Wilson to rush back.

8 — the number of times since 1970 that Pittsburgh has started 3-0. The previous seven teams to reach that mark ended up winning a division title.

Try to keep it going next week against Indianapolis (1-2). The Colts bullied Pittsburgh in a 30-13 victory at Lucas Oil Stadium last December.

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Pittsburgh Steelers running back Cordarrelle Patterson, left, runs with the ball against Los Angeles Chargers cornerback Kristian Fulton, right, during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris (22) is tackled by Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Troy Dye, bottom, during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris, right, is tackled by Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Daiyan Henley, left, during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris (22) tries to hurdle Los Angeles Chargers safety Alohi Gilman (32) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)

Pittsburgh Steelers linebackers Alex Highsmith, left, and T.J. Watt celebrate during the first half of an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Name)

Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Donte Jackson, left, tackles Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)

Los Angeles Chargers tight end Will Dissly, center, hits the ground next to Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Donte Jackson, right, after being tackled by linebacker Patrick Queen during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) is sacked by Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Elandon Roberts, bottom left, during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes are hanging near their all-time highs on Monday.

The S&P 500 was 0.3% higher in afternoon trading, coming off its fifth winning week in the last six, and flitting around its record set on Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 40 points, or 0.1%, from its own record set on Friday. The Nasdaq composite was 0.3% higher, as of 12:53 p.m. Eastern time.

Tesla led the way with a gain of 4.9%. The maker of electric vehicles has clawed back all its sharp losses from earlier in the year. It was down as much as 42% at one point in April, when it was cutting prices on its cars to boost flaccid sales.

Financial markets have been romping higher after the Federal Reserve last week cut its main interest rate for the first time in more than four years by an unusually large amount. The hope is that as it continues to cut interest rates, the boost given to the U.S. economy through lower rates for car loans, mortgages and other borrowing will help it avoid a recession.

But some critics say the Federal Reserve may be moving too late, with the job market already slowing, and call stock prices too high.

A report on Monday morning suggested U.S. business activity is not growing as quickly as economists expected, mostly because of a continued downturn in manufacturing. The preliminary report from S&P Global said U.S. manufacturing shrank more severely in September than in August and hit a 15-month low. It's been one of the parts of the economy hurt most by high interest rates.

The overall figures suggest a U.S. economy that's still growing at a healthy rate, according to Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence. "But there are some warning lights flashing, notably in terms of the dependence on the service sector for growth, as manufacturing remained in decline, and the worrying drop in business confidence.”

He also pointed to subdued activity among businesses given uncertainty heading into the U.S. elections in November.

Several reports coming this week could offer more context about where the U.S. economy stands. One on Thursday will offer the final reading for the U.S. economy’s growth in the spring, and another on Friday will give a look at how much U.S. consumers are spending.

Such economic reports, particularly on the job market, are taking top priority on Wall Street because the main fear is now a slowdown in the job market. It’s a notable shift from prior years, when the most attention was on anything related to inflation.

But now that inflation has come down substantially from its peak two summers ago, the Fed has shifted gears.

It feels less need to keep rates high in order to slow the economy enough to stifle inflation, hence last week’s cut of half a percentage point to its main interest rate. And it feels more pressure to prop up the job market and overall economy, hence its plans to keep cutting interest rates this year and next.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 3.77% from 3.74% late Friday. The yield on the two-year Treasury, which moves more with expectations for Fed action, held steady at 3.60%, where it was late Friday.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe after preliminary data suggested business activity in the euro zone is weaker than economists expected. Germany’s DAX rose 0.6%, while the French CAC 40 was basically flat.

In Asia, movements for indexes were also muted. Indexes rose 0.4% in Shanghai but slipped 0.1% in Hong Kong after China’s central bank lowered its 14-day reverse repurchase rate on Monday. That followed its decision to keep key lending rates unchanged last week, when investors had been expecting a cut.

AP Writer Zimo Zhong contributed.

The flag of Argentina flies on the front of the New York Stock Exchange where Argentine President Javier Milei will ring the opening bell on Monday, Sept. 23, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan)

A bus passes the Wall St. subway station on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan)

FILE - People walk in front of Tokyo Stock Exchange building in Tokyo, on May 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)